Age-Related Trajectories of Health Decline Among Immigrants and Natives in Europe: The Effect of Education.

Abstract

Background: The ability to age healthily is highly dependent on individual characteristics that include gender, social class, a range of biological and contextual factors, and migrant background. Indeed, immigration has changed the demographic composition and social structure of many European countries, generating an increasing interest in how societies, and immigrants in particular, are aging. Research Design: This paper compares the age-related trajectories of health decline in three health measures (activity limitation indicator, self-perceived health, and chronic conditions) among 7,429 immigrants and 81,424 native-born populations aged 50 years old and over using longitudinal data from seven waves of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) (2004-2020). Analysis: We use descriptive and multivariate models (random-effects regression models) to analyze the association between migration status and each health outcome. We are particularly interested in determining the age-related trajectory of this association across three levels of education, exploring at the same time the effect of the interaction between immigration status and age on health. Results: Our results highlight potential gaps in health between immigrants and native-born people that are particularly large for the low-educated group. In other words, the health decline is more marked for low-educated immigrants compared to native-born populations in particular for activity limitation indicator and self-perceived health, while it is less pronounced with the accumulation of chronic conditions. Conclusions: Our findings should serve to enhance the design of the provision of social services and support and the promotion of equal opportunities.